82 xj650 project in PA

Started a project bike that began as a 1982 yammy xj650 maxim in a box.. well Several Boxes! 8O Turns out it was a bike that a bikeshop had and was accumulating parts and pieces for it from other maxims. Bought it for a hundred dollars and began the exploration into the boxes with the help of a friend, lots of extras but also some needed extras> btw (not running) major cleaning soon followed. started with the carbs *yuk* they were nasty but after much cleaning they turned out pretty good. didn't want this to end up as a restore so we began cutting and removing several parts and things that were not part of the end plan.. Not real sure what the end plan will b classified as but im doin it anyway.. Drag bars, in black, the frame is cleaned and also repainted black, did a grafite color for a contrasting color on the hardware and probably on the tank as well. hopefully the pics will follow here. post more later

 

these are pics of my bike slowly coming together. after a few weeks of labor on this thing this is all the further ive gotten but its hard to devote time to it when there is work, family, and meetings and obligations to get to first. so a slower project than i wanted but it is looking better and i am happy so far with it.

 

Good lookin' bike!

 

Lookin' good! Did you pull the engine to paint the frame or leave it in?

 

hey man, thats coming through very clean. Them forks look Great....thats one of my next projects is getting the forks done.

 

Yamchop- i letf it in the bike just taped off what needed to be...
Cmc- you can't see in the pics but the fork legs are the black they look sweet. If i ever get the regular camera working again i can get better pics, these were with the cell phone.

 

looks good, keep the pics comin'.

 

This is what i kinda started with, along with the xtra boxes of parts (had this pic at work and not at home so i couldn't start with this one like i wanted)

 

Cant wait to run this beauty...!!!!!! its killing me that its still just sitting there getting worked on, oh yeah im a little inpatient .. you guys feel my pain here the awsome weather and the beauty of Pa doesn't last forever!

 

I know what your saying, it took me two months until i finally goit to hear my bike run and take the first test ride. Im Near State College, PA where you at?

 

Right now im in northern york county, but hoping to move to gettysburg area.
Im at about 5 weeks and still have yet to hear it run saw your thread Q: why the suicide shifter?

 

Cuz it's out of the Normal, and it makes a good conversation piece, truth be told these bikes are to fast to use one , but since im a putter anywayz and not racing it will work fine for me.

 

I like how it's coming along man. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I think that engine is a 1981 engine. Can't wait to see more of it!

 

I got my 2nd Seca 750 from a student at Ship last year! It ran but not well (found 2 of 4 carb floats upside down :roll: ). Cleaned out master cylinder, greased caliper slides and just replaced front tire. Will soon be rebuilding forks. I empathize with your frustration.

 

I am pretty sure it is a non YICS 1982 xj650 motor but anythings possible, everything is titled '82... is there a tell tale way to discover if it is an '81 engine, if so i would b interested in finding out.

 

This was done in the early stages of the planning of what to do with it.. now this pic was modified at work with the Microsoft Paint program so it is stupid looking but impressive for that program!!!

Nevermind the color it is to be changed and you can see there is less bike there, than when this was done. Planning on using an 08 cbr 1000rr led taillight upside down to have it intergrated into the tail section, ordered some new turnsignals for the front and back...

Still a low budget build as this is my first build and couldnt just go out and purchase a couple thousand dollar bike (lack of funds) this was my best option and it came at "the right price"...

 

Ps nevermind the name of the heading on that pic it was on a friends blackberry and just named that?!?!?

 

Like that idea, reminds me of a suzuki 109 the way the rear is shaped.

 

Never thought of it that way but its gonna be a bit shorter and the idea is to creat it with body lines to curtail it a little better. thats a bridge i will cross when i get there, I wish thats where i was in the process now but alas i am still wondering if the thing will even run.

Gonna work on getting the bowls cleaned the rest of the way out missed something the last time and need to make it right.

 

When you get thru with those carbs you can come down here in the 100 degree heat and do mine.LOL

 

If you need a hand with the carbs give me a shout.

 

Thanks IWIN i appreciate it, the guy i work with knows alot more than me about them so he is helping to try and dial them in if there is stuff we cant get figured out i will take you up on the offer.

Orange that would be a grand ride but i don't think i would have the time...lol

 

Just cut the gauge cluster in half only gonna use the speedo and the warning lights side, will have to make up a side piece to cover but it should clean up the front a little

 

Post a picture please, this is something I have wanted to do, but know that there was no going back after I did.

 

I will try and get a pic on here tomorrow when im off... turned out good just needs painted now.

 

As long as you have a seat that keeps you from sliding back onto the rear fender, you're good. Mine was scary as hell to tach out and bang a gear. Pulled so hard at the top of second I'd have to use all my leg muscle to hold onto the bike while I shifted to third. Next bike will have a "scooped" seat to keep my butt on it.

 

So when you get done, you, me, and 650rigid are going to cruise together, right?

Hey 650rigid, completely unrelated to the post but I was in Middletown today and drove down Schoolhouse Road, unfortunately in a van, please tell me that you have been on that road. In one word, amazing!

 

Wasn't me. I sold the bike in my sig last year. I see it every day it's nice out though. Sold it to a guy I work with who also happens to live about 3 blocks from me. I got an XS 650 now. Gonna start hardtailing it this saturday. In the meantime, I'm riding an XT 600 enduro.

 

zyggy- i plan on riding the heck out of this bike when its completed... so yeah im up for it

 

UPDATE! these are my "new" grips(didnt see anything i liked so i got these)

these are schwinn 4banger handle grips from a "HomeGrown" version bicycle... top of the line at the time and super comfortable 8)

The beast fired over for the first time in at least 7 years, she didn't have any carbs or headers but she wanted to run. Fired right up with carb cleaner & wd40 on a rag... super excited :lol: now the wiring harness is in and the new fuse box with blade fuses is on its way in, mirrors and turn signals came in and the controls are coming together...




sorry about the delay on posts haven't had alot of time to work on it bc the family dog ran away and we are devoting our time to finding her. :cry:

More to follow

 

So what part of northern York county are you? PM if you don't want to say on this thread, would love to see this thing come together, and if you need a hand I would be glad to help! Especially with the carb cleaning, I had to do mine like 3 times before I got it right, so I have TONS of pointers. If you don't want help or don't want me to know where you live tell me to go pound sand.....trust me I've heard worse.

Also, you asked a question a bit ago about how to figure out the year of your bike/motor.

Per Chacal's Post: http://www.xjbikes.com/Forums/viewtopic ... t=vin.html

In fact, on the VIN decal on your bike, besides the 17-position VIN number, you will also find the date of the bike production in the format MM/YY, such as 10/80 (meaning October, 1980). A 10/80-built bike would be a 1981 MODEL YEAR vehicle.

The model YEAR code in the tenth position of the VIN are as follows:

A = 1980
B = 1981
C = 1982
D = 1983
E = 1984
F = 1985
G = 1986
and so on......

The short code should be found on your engine (right side stamped on the alloy itself) or the side of the frame neck, and it should match up with your VIN number as follows:

1) On the right side of the steering "neck" or tube (or "head pipe" as it is sometimes called), you'll find stamped the shorty VIN (1980 and early-1982 models) or the full 17-positions VIN (late-1981 and later years) is stamped, vertically, into the frame tube.

Here, as an example, for the 1980 and 1981 XJ650 Maxim (4H7) models, we have:

1980: starting serial number of 000101
1981: starting serial number of 100101

Thus, if you come across this shorty VIN:

4H7-021338

then you know that since the "serial number" is less than the number 100,101 (which is the starting serial number for 1981 models), then it's a 1980 XJ650 Maxim.

But when you see this shorty VIN, as from our "Build-A-Bike" example above:

4H7-101457

then since that serial number is greater than the "100101" starting point for 1981 model year bikes, then you automatically know that it's a 1981 (and not a 1980) "4H7" bike (an XJ650 Maxim).

If you have some spare time to read, Chacal has done a great job outlining the ins and outs about VINS and has some great Yamaha history in the link above. I found it pretty interesting!

 

thanks for the info as far as i can tell it said that it was made 10/81 which makes it an '82

ill pm you then, yeah these threads are usually good reading and helpfull

Update the pics of the gauges and the tank, still awaiting the time to finish the work on it but a little at a time i guess

 

Wow the gauges look brand new! Great job with the mod. Are you buying all of these parts that look brand new or did you get these in those boxes for $100? So the question is, why did you get rid of the tach?

 

Nice job on the gauge!

 

electronic tach and it didn't work so i just did away with it.. liked the smaller look too.

Everything came with the bike in those boxes many xtra parts from '80,'81,and '82 just piecing it together and the master cylinder is off of a 2007 WR super-moto, the exhaust is off a 1997 Ninja 600, tail light is from a 2008 CBR 1000rr turned upside down, New front pegs from the '97 ninja, the drag bars were donated to the project by my boss, handle grips were off a 2004 schwinn, i have a sportster solo seat that might fit(havent gotten that far yet) but so far the rest of the parts are from the boxes.

Relocated the key to under the seat area and will be using the mount from the key up front to mount the gauges.

thanks zyggy & orange!

 

Wow, sounds like you struck it rich! A lot of those parts look brand new. I would love to do some modifications to mine, but I enjoy riding too much to think about a thing like that right now!

Keep up the good work.

 

Good job, keep the pics coming.

 

The carborators are back together with the caps painted and looking good... pics to follow:
installed the speedo gauge with a custome mount to keep it down near the headlight.. now i need a petcock rebuild kit because the sucker started leaking out the front face plate and the handle.. UGH! after that i will need to order brakes and make up a seat and the tail section

think that the wiring is about 90% finished with the new blade style fuse box

More to follow

 

well people because of an series of events i may not have any more on this bike very sad , still loving the xj's and will be keeping my eye out for them

 

not cool man!!! there are lots of xj project bikes in the area. check craigslist on a regular basis an I'm sure something will pop up. i just hope you got all your money back! let me know how things go, and give me a shout if you want some help in your search.

 

Thanks zyggy Got the money back but not the time and effort, u know how much this sucks... oh well life goes on and i agree there are quite a few on craigslist here and there but the costs for them are jacked a little much because these style bikes are making a comeback


Still got ur number and we will chat then on other threads im sure

 

That speedo looks great...what a low mile bike!

 

what happend bro????

 

Trouble happened

 

I know of someone who is trying to get rid of an 82 Maxim 650, I don't know what he wants for it, but I can look into it for you.

He "customized" it, and by that I mean, he painted just about EVERYTHING, black engine, white wheels, burnt orange tank, it's actually pretty ugly, but there are ways of changing that!

 

Thanks man i will take you up on that offer let me know what you find out... Thanks Zyg